To Catch A Smuggler, season 2

release year: 2020
genre: TV documentary show (8 episodes)
viewing setting: home streaming 5/27-28/23

synopsis: Homeland Security officers at three different U.S. airports go about their jobs daily, inspecting people, luggage, and shipped goods for anything bad.

impressions: I had a sudden and random urge to see this, and via the magic of the internet in the 2020s, I was easily able to. This show depicts the working hours of various teams of officers. Some randomly talk to passengers, looking for anything suspicious; at times, these conversations lead to the person being detained and perhaps used to arrest someone higher up the chain. Other times, despite thorough questioning and searching, nothing is found. This is a good way to learn about not only what not to do when traveling, but also how normal non-guilty people act (hint: if you're randomly chosen for a search, don't start mouthing off at the officers - they're just doing their jobs.) It's sad to see not only how some travelers are manipulated and used to traffic illegal things, but also how damn stupid some people are.

acting: n/a but a number of the officers show up in multiple episodes, and you start to feel like you get to know them after a while.

final word: Highly entertaining look at the work done to protect the U.S. at airports.

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